Boston Flora

Tag: art class

  • Monday, January 20 – Friday, January 24, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm – ON LOCATION: The Kampong

    Monday, January 20 – Friday, January 24, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm – ON LOCATION: The Kampong

    Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens announces the 2020 annual ON LOCATION: The Kampong, at the National Tropical Botanical Garden in Coconut Grove, Florida. All abilities are welcome.   Join Sarah Roche and enjoy five days of botanical art.  Once on location, start to draw with easy field sketches on the grounds of the stunning Kampong historic home and garden, where the climate of the southeast shore of Florida affords a natural open-air environment in which tropical species flourish.  Explore rudiments of form from live specimens as you work in graphite studies.  Some plants will be flowering, others will be fruiting, and some may have all stages of development visible.  Then add color with watercolors.  Take home a journal filled with field sketches useful for future art works and fond memories of a unique experience.  The fee includes class instruction, four luncheons, and a visit to a local botanic garden.  Travel, accommodations, other food, and other expenses not included.  Dormitory accommodations at The Kampong may be arranged on a first-come basis.  For those arriving on Sunday, January 19, a get-acquainted gathering will be arranged.  Contact WCBG Friends for more details.  WCBG Friends of Kampong Members $540, non-members $640. To register, email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu or call 781-283-3094. Offered in collaboration with The Kampong, National Tropical Botanical Garden.

  • Sunday, October 27, 10:30 am – 4:30 pm – Drawing Fall Gourds with Colored Pencil

    Tower Hill Botanic Garden has scheduled an art class on October 27 from 10:30 – 4:30 on Drawing Fall Gourds with Colored Pencil. Autumn colors are everywhere. Refine your technique of layering colored pencils to achieve beautiful, realistic botanical art. Using fall gourds as subject matter, discover what colors to mix for subtle tonal values, how to depict textures and pattern, and where to add highlights and shadows. A materials list will be provided upon registration. $80 for Tower Hill members, $90 for nonmembers. Register at www.towerhillbg.org.

    Carol Schwartz is an award winning artist, educator, scientific illustrator and nature themed picture book artist, with over 60 books illustrated by her. She has been an Artist in Residence at the Shoal’s Marine Laboratory on Appledore Island, ME for the past two years and teaches illustration at Eastern Connecticut State University.

  • Wednesday, October 23 – Friday, October 25, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm – Developing Depth

    How often do we see technically brilliant botanical paintings with specimens arranged all on one plane? In their natural habitat, plants overlap and intermingle with others to create a backdrop against which to view the stars of the show. Elaine Searle will reveal her techniques for creating intrigue and drama with more complex layered compositions. Topics covered will include setting up clear focal points, using ‘atmospheric perspective’ and when and how to let go of detail in some areas. You will work towards a small painting using these techniques. This course is ideal for advanced beginners or intermediate artists who wish to take their compositions to a new level. The three day class (October 23 – 25) will be held in the Putnam classroom at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley, and is $395 for Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens, $495 for nonmembers. Register by calling 781-283-3094, or email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu.

    copyright Elaine Searle

  • Tuesday, October 22, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm – Beginning with Light

    Knowing how to set up your specimen with correct lighting to reveal all the nuances of form, color and texture is essential to capturing realism in your botanical art. In this one day Friends of Wellesley Botanic Gardens workshop on October 22 from 9:30 – 3:30, Elaine Searle will demonstrate her technique and guide you in getting the best results. The day will start with a short presentation and you will partner up to try out the lighting rig. Having lit and photographed specimens, we will do some practical work on painting realistic light and shadow on varying reflective surfaces. This workshop is suitable for all levels from beginner to advanced. Friends members $150, nonmembers $200. The class will be held in the Cheney classroom at The Gardens at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley. Register by calling 781-283-3094, or email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu.

    copyright Elaine Searle

  • Sunday, October 13 – Tuesday, October 15, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm – Fruits and Seeds: The Bounty of Autumn

    Master dry brush technique by painting all things autumnal – from nuts and seeds to late berries, hips and haws, seed heads and crunchy leaves, will be the topic of this Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Garden three day class on October 13 – 15, at the Wellesley College Club from 9:30 am – 3:30 pm. Lizzie Sanders will show you how to make precise and sharp images using tiny brushes and almost no water. With guidance from Lizzie learn to create detail and textures. Over three days we will cover several different specimens as a study sheet or make one single painting. Emphasis will be on achieving accurate rendering of surface texture and color. Learn how to make the selected specimens look truly 3D on the page. This class is suitable for intermediate to advanced artists. $395 for Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens members. $495 for nonmembers. Register by calling 781-283-3094 or email wcbgfriends@wellesley.edu

    copyright Lizzie Sanders

  • Thursdays, August 8 – August 29, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm – The Garden in Watercolors Session II

    Explore the Garden through the pleasure of watercolor painting. We will work outdoors in the garden translating its vistas and details into paintings. Each Berkshire Botanical Garden class will begin in the Center House with demonstrations and helpful assignments. Ann Kremers will offer encouragement and suggestions throughout the painting sessions. Beginners and experienced painters are welcome. In case of rain the Center House offers a lovely venue that is sheltered from the elements.

    Ann Kremers is an artist and calligrapher from Bennington, Vermont.  She teaches watercolor painting, drawing and calligraphy to beginners as well as experienced painters, some of whom work with her on an ongoing basis. She has received numerous commissions for paintings and created calligraphy for institutions and private individuals.

    BBG member price $155, nonmembers $175. Individual classes, space permitting, are $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. Register at www.berkshirebotanical.org.

    copyright Ann Kremers

  • Thursdays, July 11 – August 1, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm – The Garden in Watercolor, Session One

    Explore the Berkshire Botanical Garden through the pleasure of watercolor painting. We will work outdoors in the garden translating its vistas and details into paintings. Each class (Thursdays, July 11 – August 1, 10 – 1) will begin in the Center House with demonstrations and helpful assignments. Ann Kremers will offer encouragement and suggestions throughout the painting sessions.  Beginners and experienced painters are welcome. In case of rain, the Center House offers a lovely venue that is sheltered from the elements.

    Ann Kremers is an artist and calligrapher from Bennington, Vermont. She teaches watercolor painting, drawing, and calligraphy to beginners as well as experienced painters, some of whom work with her on an ongoing basis. She has received numerous commissions for paintings and created calligraphy for institutions and private individuals.

    Series: $155 for BBG members, $175 for non members. Individual Class: BBG Members: $45, Non-Members: $60 (space permitting) Register at www.berkshirebotanical.org.

  • Fridays, July 12 & 19, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm – Graphite and Charcoal Drawing in the Garden

    Using pencils, charcoal, and other materials, learn how to emphasize tonal values, texture, and the weight of line in the discovery of plant details from the garden. The two session Tower Hill Botanic Garden class on Fridays, July 12 and 19, 9 – 3, will involve a discussion and small technique sketches before approaching a larger comprehensive and completed drawing. A materials list will be sent upon registration.

    The class will be taught by Carolyn Todd. Carolyn earned her BFA and MA in studio Fine Arts and Fine Arts education from the University of Texas and the University of Houston. She was selected as the “Artist in Residence” for the National Park Service, Amistad National Recreation Area. She enjoys helping students of all ages discover their personal expression by enabling critical thinking. Carolyn teaches drawing, and watercolor, oil, acrylic, gouache, and encaustic painting. She is currently teaching in the ALFA program at Fitchburg State University, and the Creative Minds program (Seven Hills Foundation) at the Worcester and Fitchburg Art Museums.

    $156 for Tower Hill members, $176 for nonmembers. Register at www.towerhillbg.org.

    Image from Jackson’s Art Supplies

  • Thursday, June 27, 11:00 am – 2:00 pm – Eco Printing: Botanical Prints on Paper

    Capture leaf and flower images directly on paper using a process called eco printing. In this Massachusetts Horticultural class on June 27 from 11 – 2 at The Gardens at Elm Bank, you will experiment with two forms of eco printing. First, you will learn how to treat paper with a mordant that helps the plant pigments bind to paper. You will arrange plants on your mordanted papers and steam them to capture nature’s beauty.

    While your first batch of prints is steaming, you will make a second bundle of plants and paper that you will boil with rusty objects. The iron from the rusty objects will bind the plant pigments to the paper. You will leave with lots of prints that can be used for cards, framed pictures, or collages. $75 for Mass Hort members, $110 for the general public. Register at www.masshort.org.

    Mary DeLano is a fiber explorer who loves eco printing, natural dying, stitching, wool applique, and rug making. Mary enjoys sharing her passion for fiber arts with new students.  She teaches throughout New England, including at Maine Fiber College, where she also serves on the organizing committee. Watch a video at https://www.marydelanofiberart.com/ to see what fun awaits you.

  • Friday, June 21, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm – Roots and Shoots

    Join artist and naturalist Louise Barteau for a one-day botanical workshop on June 21 from 9:30 – 3:30 in the Putnam classroom at Elm Bank, 900 Washington Street in Wellesley. Using a hand lens and a notebook, examine many examples of plant structures while considering their role in plant growth. Brief slide presentations will be accompanied by hands-on observation and exercises. This Friends of Wellesley College Botanic Gardens class is $70 for members, $85 for non-members. Register at www.wellesley.edu/wcbg/learn